A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



His son and heir was Gilbert, made a knight in 

 1388. In 1367 Otes de Halsall gave land in Barton 

 to Gilbert his son and Elizabeth his wife, probably 

 on the occasion of their marriage. 1 Some dispute 

 occurred about 1379 as to the title of David Hulme 

 of Maghull in the manor of Halsall, and this was 

 settled by Gilbert. 8 He was escheator for the county 

 in 22 Richard II. After his death two inquisitions 

 were made (1404), one of which states that 'on the 

 day of his forfeiture ' he had no estates save those 

 found and appraised in an inquisition taken in 

 August, 1403.* The other recites the gifts of 

 Robert de Parr of the manors of Halsall and Down- 

 holland and lands there ; also Argar Meols and Birk- 

 dale, with remainder to Otes son of Gilbert ; these 

 had descended to Henry de Halsall, clerk, as son and 

 heir of Sir Gilbert, son of Otes ; the grant by the 

 last-named to his son and his wife is also recorded, 

 with the statement that Gilbert died seised thereof, 

 and Elizabeth his wife was still living. 4 



Henry de Halsall, the heir, had embraced an 

 ecclesiastical career, and was in 1395 presented by 

 his father to the rectory of Halsall, which in 1413 

 he exchanged for the archdeaconry of Chester. He 

 retained his various preferments till his death on 

 7 March, 1 42 2-3. 5 He wished to interfere as 

 little as possible with secular business, for one of his 

 earliest acts was to make a settlement on the marriage 

 of his brother Robert with Ellen daughter of Henry 

 de Scarisbrick ; and then to arrange the dower of his 

 mother. 6 



His brother and successor Robert does not seem 

 to have survived him long, for from 1429 the name 

 of his son Henry frequently occurs. 7 The inquisi- 

 tions taken after the death of Henry Halsall in July, 



1 47 1, give many details of the family history and pro- 

 perty. Otes, his great-grandfather, had acquired a 

 messuage and 24 acres from Emma wife of Thomas 

 the clerk of Edge, and some similar properties. His 

 father Robert appears to have acquired other lands 

 in Halsall and the neighbouring villages including 

 Thornfield Clerk, Blakehey, Dudleyhey and Brand- 

 erth in Halsall ; and these he had given to Henry 

 in 1426-7 on his marriage with Katherine, daughter 

 of Sir James Harrington, and they had descended to 

 his daughters and heirs, Margaret and Elizabeth (wife 

 of Lambert Stodagh), whose ages were forty and 

 thirty-eight years respectively. Most (or all) of the 

 lands, however, went to the heir male, his brother 

 Richard's son Hugh, who was of full age in 1472.* 



Hugh's father Richard had been married at the 

 end of 1448 to Grace daughter of Sir John Tempest.' 

 Of Hugh himself nothing seems known ; he was still 

 lord of Halsall in 1483.' His son " Henry, who was 

 made a knight by Lord Strange in Scotland in the 

 autumn of 1 49 J," married Margaret Stanley, daughter 

 of James Stanley, clerk. 13 Sir Henry died in June, 

 1522. At the inquisition taken after his death it was 

 found he had held the manors of Halsall, Renacres, 

 Lydiate, and Barton, and lands in Scarisbrick and 

 elsewhere ; also the manors of Downholland and 

 Westleigh. 14 These had been assigned to trustees to 

 perform his will, made in I5i8. 15 The manor of 

 Halsall was held of Thomas Butler by the twentieth 

 part of a knight's fee ; the manor of Renacres of the 

 prior of St. John by the free rent of i id. yearly, 

 being worth 40^. clear ; the manor of Barton of the 

 heirs of Peter Holland by the service of 6d. yearly, its 

 clear value being 40^.; the premises of Downholland 

 were held of the same. 16 



